An Emperor colony at Halley Bay pictured during a survey to get the first reliable census of the iconic birds

The first census of penguins at the South Pole has found nearly 600,000 – twice the number previously thought to be there. Using state-of-the-art satellite imagery, scientists found 44 colonies of emperor penguins.Seven colonies were previously unknown, and many of the known ones were bigger than expected. In the past, it was notoriously difficult to estimate their numbers as they live in temperatures of -50c (-58f), and some colonies are in the most remote parts of the Antarctic sea ice.The British Antarctic Survey hopes that having an accurate number – thought to be 595,000 compared with previous estimates of 270,000-350,000 – will help manage conservation and track climate change. The scientists hope having an accurate measure of their number - now though to be 595,000 compared to previous estimates of 270,000-350,000 - will help manage conservation efforts and track the impact of climate change.

Counting emperor penguins in their icy Antarctic habitat was not easy until researchers used new technology to map the birds from space

Emperors are the largest penguins, and live in the coldest and most remote locations. Other Antarctic penguins live further north. They have gold patches on their ears and tops of their chests.Living in large colonies, they are the only penguin species to breed through the pitch-dark Antarctic winter in brutal temperatures and winds of more than 120 miles an hour.Counting emperor penguins in their icy Antarctic habitat was not easy until researchers used new technology to map the birds from space